I understand what you're saying but I have to disagree as your view is quite similar to most apologists with very little consideration of basic biology.
You compare the analog of a hat to that of a hijab...
You personally wear a hat out of habit and tradition. Ok... The invention of a hat came into fruition because protection was needed from the sun when doing work, outside. The function of a hat is to protect you from the sun and the heat. But the hat only covers your head, your neck is still exposed, you have quite a bit of cooling through evaporation.
If you think the hijab is practical because it protects from the sun like a hat does, that's incorrect. Hijab does no such thing, you must cover your whole head and neck with hijab as well as body, arms and legs. I wore hijab for over 7 years of my life, I have experienced so much heat stroke due to the many layer in the heat, you feel like you're choking. Drink all the water you want but the heat you experience only builds with every step and has no place to go. I rarely went out on the hottest days because I had to cover, its not freeing but stifling in every way.

Hats come in a number of materials, some are even net for more cooling. You'll never see a see through hijab as that defeats the purpose and further proves its not for solar protection. Hijabs are traditionally black, science proves black absorbs heat while white reflects it, black is still the #1 color of hijab globally. You fry so you can't travel far, you are to not leave your house without making sure your existence is limited to being reduced to a black dot for you are property of a man in every phase of your life. The hijab is not only suffocating but it causes quite a bit of alopecia, dandruff, rashes and accidental throat/scalp pin stabbings....because your head ISN'T suppose to be covered for that long.

Also when you personally wear a hat you get to choose your clothes to go with it, if you wore a hat and walked around in shorts no one would care. Hijab must be complete from head to toe as stated earlier also you are not allowed to look men in the eyes as part of hijab, you can't laugh too loud, you are to draw no extra attention for is causes fitna (desire in men).

Your point on beauty, how does being covered up equate to beauty in any way what is so beautiful about being covered up? Even in nature we are more drawn to the flowers that bloom, the most radiant colorful colors, you rarely care for buds that haven't opened up yet. If covering adheres to beauty as a whole why aren't men more encouraged to cover up? In Islam men only cover for prayer and that's it and they're still way more exposed for cooling. When I was Muslim I was told I need to cover because men (god's most superior being) can't control their biological urges which somehow was my innate fault because biologically I was born a female....amazing how god couldn't just fix that broken bit in men....or better yet not name them as superiors.

As for tradition, pre-Islamic era did not have hijabs many regions had chadars which is no different than a giant shawl that BOTH men and women wore, you don't bind yourself in it but more so drape.

As far as scripture, the shit cloth is mentioned in exegesis and god didn't even come up with the ruling, hijab was summoned because the prophet's perverse ass companions (again the highest of the highest men) kept telling the prophet to cover his wives or else they would rape them... so a verse about covering came? Right there god could have removed the urge. You said no body makes you wear a hat...how lucky. Do you know what the punishment is for women if their hijab is slightly off/incorrect or better yet she refuses in Islamic countries? Public beatings, gang rape, torture and honor killings. Wow. No women would adhere to Islamic ruling if they really knew what their god said they were in Islam: 2nd class, property and their biological sex being the reason they will be attacked...

Most people also tend to wear a hat outside, sure some people wear it inside but hijab is something that must be worn around ALL non immediately related men whether inside or out, so if you were cooking and your neighbor could see you thru the window, slap that cloth on. Cousin comes over? Hijab it up. Oh its your brother's 13 yr old tutoree? Oh I can't let him have a boner if I say hi...I better wear a hijab...how odd he still got a boner?!?

I do agree with you on when you said a woman SHOULD be able to wear whatever she wants its no one's business, that isn't the case in Islam and that was the main reason for my poem. WE should be able to wear whatever the fuck we want, look at whoever we want and speak to whoever we want its religion that punishes us for basic biology.

Also women in the west are extremely privilege, hijab has taken a completely different meaning hell it comes in bright colors hereeee. Its a fashion statement. But even here if you take off your hijab the shunning and shit that comes with it keeps most hijabs on, so is it truly a woman's desire to wear one or is it because she doesn't want to lose her family. Women wear hijab because according to Islam if you don't you're going to hell, and your secondary sex characteristic, hair, has to be covered to be considered...good? I wonder how many would wear it if hijab wasn't their semi ticket to heaven... But if women in the West knew, if any Muslim woman knew what hijab really was for there would be a lot more hijab burnings like that of Iran...although I'm personally for hijab being turned into clothes for the poor or something.

@altschmerz where does your friend live (US)? Here or in an actual Islamic country?

@altschmerz Also you are suppose to shame women who don't wear a hijab its apart of the faith. You are suppose to remind her how she is the reason men will attack her, you know what Muslim communities say when a Muslim girl does get attacked and didn't wear a hijab? "She asked for it", "If she wore hijab this wouldn't happen." Kind of a double standard, no? Women think they're being protected yet they shun their own that get hurt because they refuse to wear hijab. Yes there are quite a few liberal and moderate muslim, my family has sides of both but my point is more so for the orthodox or even those more cultural Muslim who force hijab both consciously or subconsciously. The cloth is praised, remove it and you're shunned or thought less of. There's hijabis and then hoejabis in most muslim communities.

@altschmerz oh ok that makes a lot of sense, women also tend to get more religious in Pakistan with the number of children they have kind of like praying for contraception since in Pakistan its highly discouraged. I've not saying this is your friend's reason but I'm seen the same happen within my family (I'm Pakistani). A hoejabi is basically a hijabi that adheres to modern day standards of beauty aka shes super westernized. So she has make up, her hijab is adorned, she wears jeans (blasphemy!) Basically she's claiming modesty while doing the opposite lol. So like a hijabi you'd see in a LV scarf or something, you'll see more Afghans and arabs as hoejabis than pakis.

@drkhannabis To tell the truth, I assumed that you were some feminist American woman trying to dictate her values.

You have given me quite an education.

@altschmerz lol yes technically she would be

The "exquisite" hijabs you see are considered sin by the orthodox its actually not allowed nor considered apart of being a true Muslim, which is another problem. That is the problem with Islam you are not allowed to wear what you want, you are shamed cause Islam says you must shame people into being better and every sect or Muslim has to tell you their way is the correct way. There is nothing beautiful about hijab. Please remember Islam is the most malignant Abrahamic faith in the world, its nothing more than a wolf in sheep's clothing pretending to be good. One day there will be no hijab and I live and fight to see that day, every day.

@drkhannabis I am aware that Islam has various denominations and traditions in the same way all religions including Judaism and Christianity do, but thank you for clarifying my remarks.
I have had two very good Muslim friends in my life, both were very liberal and both married non muslim wives simply because they valued independent thinking in their wives.
However they were back then in a minority a situation that is changing for the better both here (UK) and abroad, but all too slowly which in part is responsible for the reactionary knee jerk reactions among the fundamentalist and extremists who see tradition as strength and enforced orthodoxy as paradise worthy piety as was and to some extent still is the case in the western "faiths".